Many films, particularly in the indie industry, are rather personal for their makers. “Homeless” however, goes a step beyond, since the director himself was actually homeless for a time during high school, while his co-writer, Kim Seung-hyeun experienced a similar situation with the one in the movie with his grandmother who was living by herself, away from her family.
“Homeless” is screening at International Film Festival Rotterdam
In that regard, the story revolves around a homeless couple with a baby child, Han-gyeol, Go-woon and Woo-rim. A bit before, they got scammed by a real estate agent and lost the entire deposit they have been saving up to get an apartment, and now barely manage to survive with the money Go-woon earns putting up flyers carrying Woo-rim and Han-gyeol’s work as delivery man. At night, they sleep in saunas, but one day, the baby gets hurt during their stay there and their situation becomes even worse. Han-gyeol asks from his boss and colleagues to loan him money but they decline, and having no alternative, they end up temporarily staying at a house of an elderly woman he got to know through his deliveries. Han-gyeol tells Go-woon that the woman is visiting the US for a month, but soon, it becomes evident, that something is wrong.
Lim Seung-hyeun directs a film that highlights a number of issues of modern Korean society, particularly the housing one, which, in Seoul in particular, is quite intent, as the homeless are considered to reach a million in the city. The lack of help by the social services also becomes apparent throughout the story, as much as the difficulty of finding job, particularly for young men with no degree, and young mothers. At the same time, however, this last aspect also shows the immaturity of the couple, who seem to love each other and their baby, but it becomes obvious that they did not think the logistics of having one particularly through.
The sum of all these elements creates a palpable sense of despair, which is intensified when the baby is hurt. This sense is one of the best traits of the narrative, since both Lim Seung-hyeun’s direction and the acting of Jeon Bong-seok as Han-gyeol and Park Jeong-yeon as Go-woon manage to communicate it the most eloquent fashion. It is also this element that essentially justifies the way the story progresses, in a series of actions that could be deemed despicable in any other case. At the same time, though, that the setting the protagonists inhabit is one that follows the rules of the jungle essentially, makes another comment about the Korean society in general.
Jeong Jong-heon’s cinematography focuses on the realistic presentation of the events, without any particularly exaltation. The scenes inside the house, however, are more intricate, essentially inducing the narrative with an ominousness, which occasionally borders on the thriller, although it never goes that far. Lim’s own editing follows the rules of the Korean indie, with a leisure pace that allows him to present his characters and the events without rushing, with a few exceptions here and there, as in the scene where the baby is hurt. The flashbacks are also well-placed, adding much to the narrative.
“Homeless” does not excel in any particularly aspect, but is a realistic, sensitive and very personal drama, which presents an issue very rarely depicted on screen through an approach that is both sincere and entertaining.
